Calluna Events combines unique, creative and fresh ideas with amazing organizational skills and an exceptional attention to detail to create your perfect wedding or event. We’ve established an extensive network of venues and professional vendors to fit every style and budget. We offer innovative full service planning, wedding day coordination & hourly consulting.

Friday, April 24, 2009

This week I had the opportunity to meet Brad from Smokeproof Press - a custom letterpress & printing shop in Boulder, Colorado. Brad and I have crossed paths in the past but have never met. He designed fabulous invitations for a client of mine last year and they kept saying we both needed to meet. You can see that invite here on their Flickr site.

So I went to Brad's home studio and wondered why it took me so long to meet him. Brad has been doing letterpress in Boulder since 1994. He first took a class on letterpress while a student at Naropa University and then was able to acquire his first non-mechanical press. He was then at Two Hands Paperie in Boulder for a few years before opening Smokeproof Press on his own about four years ago. Since 1994, he's added two more presses and a whole lot of type! In addition to the three presses, his studio is filled with type, paper, books, projects and other fun and inspirational things.

Smoke Proof Press specializes in one of a kind, custom work. They are truly talented and love meeting with clients to get a sense of who they are and their vision and help them create stationery for their wedding that is unique to them. (Similar to what we aim to do at Calluna Events). To see more of their work go to their Flick site HERE.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Yesterday I enjoyed a fun afternoon with Lynn, Greg and Aubrey from Brighter Day Flowers in Boulder. They hosted an open house in their cute studio in North Boulder. they served wine and an assortment of yummy cheeses, breads, grapes, apples and more! What an adorable place to work. I would feel inspired everyday if I was surrounded by beautiful flowers in an array of colors.

Tiffany and Elle from the St. Julien Hotel and Spa joined us, as well as Elizabeth from Sweetletter Press - a Boulder based letterpress studio. Elizabeth and her husband and business partner Matt are getting ready for the national stationery show in New York in mid-May so the press was fired up and we got to walk by their studio and see all the lovely invitations, cards, notes and other fun wedding and party paper products.

Thanks to Brighter Day for brightening my afternoon yesterday! And even with the glass of wine I managed to get a bike ride in after! :)

10 tips for fantastic wedding flowers from brighter day flowers in boulder, co

1 add fragrance

use a scented flower in your bouquet. years from now when you smell that flower it will bring you back to your fantastic day! here are some scented flowers for wedding bouquets: stephanotis, freesia, stock, wax flower, gardenia, ginestra, phlox, and certain rose varieties. white flowers often have the most scent.

2 bring meaning into your flowers

every flower has a meaning so tell your story with flowers or add your own meaning by using a favorite flower of a relative or special friend. visit THIS website for a complete list of flowers and their meanings:

3 try something different

encourage your florist to make your wedding unique with ideas that are memorable and different. for great ideas look at this book: The Perfect Wedding Details: More than 100 Ideas for Personalizing Your Wedding by Maria McBride-Mellinger

4 consider the time of day for your event

evening or low light weddings are more luminous with white or pale flowers and daytime or outside events pop with color and vibrant combinations.

5 transform any space

great florists are artists and can change any mundane space into something beautiful and stylish. try elevated centerpieces (at least 3 feet off the table) for rooms with high ceilings or designer linens. the magazine "Bride and Bloom" is helpful for stylish looks.

6 do some homework

bring pictures from books or magazines with your own ideas, loves and colors to your meeting with your florist. this will make your desires more clear. take notice of flower types, colors, textures and styles.

7 use seasonal flowers

you will save money, harmonize with the outside environment and the flowers are likely to be fresher, local or even organic.

8 get noticed

one or two large, dramatic flower arrangements will be more memorable than lots of small arrangements. key areas for placing flowers are where there is spot lighting, at entrances and whenever you are wanting to pull attention away from a problem or unattractive area.

9 think beyond flowers

a good florist will also decorate using fabric, lighting, candles, fruit, seasonal branches or even trees. for example: use a tree to hang the place cards or create a "lounge" area with rented furniture.

10 share the happinessafter your wedding, give your centerpieces away to special people at your wedding or arrange to give them to a charity or nursing home. this may be tax deductible.

brighter day floral design [formerly petal pushers flowers] makes brides happy and will create a highly memorable day. we do this by using simple, innovative designs, the freshest, extra long-lasting flowers, stylish vases and great enthusiasm. owner lynncunningham has been a florist for 16 years and has done hundreds of weddings in aspen, boulder and the denver area. we are the florist for the St Julien Hotel and Spa and the OmniInterlocken Resort and Spa. call today for a free consultation!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

To celebrate Earth Day we thought we'd show you some photos from past Calluna Events weddings in which we helped our brides and grooms incorporate eco-friendly, sustainable and environmental elements into their wedding.

wedding sign made from recycled wood

trees as favors

beautiful display with fresh fruit and local flowers

add to your decor by using family photographs

simple local flowers in recycled vases

simple table decor with orchid plants - guests were encouraged to take the plants as favors

lovely decor with edible fruit and locally grown flowers

table numbers that were handmade by friends = keepsake for the bride & groom

Alyson carried a bouquet of greenery in lieu of flowers

Allison reused plates and silverware she had collected

We are also so excited to be working with a client this year for her wedding that will incorporate many eco-friendly elements such as RSVP's by email, hybrid vehicles for transportation, carbon offsets for all the guests, a recycled vintage wedding dress and recycled fabrics for the bridesmaids dresses, making donations to the Colorado Carbon Fund, holding their reception at a LEED certified hotel that serves organic and local foods and of course encouraging their guests be be as low impact as possible by carpooling, reusing, recycling and reducing wherever possible, and much more! We can't wait to help her incorporate all of these ideas into their big day!

Friday, April 17, 2009

Tonight I attended the ABC (Association of Bridal Consultants) local meeting in Boulder, Colorado where I got to network with many of the Boulder and Denver based wedding planners. I've been a member of ABC since I started Calluna Events in 2004 and it's a great organization for it's education, certification and networking.

Wendy Foster from TDA Design, a Denver based decor company, gave a presentation at the meeting on how to incorporate decor into your wedding without breaking the budget as well as told us trends she is seeing for this year. Here are Wendy's thougths:

Decor you can use without breaking the budget

1) Lighting - use lighting to completely change the mood of the room. Up lights, or cans set on the floor, can create dramatic results for very little money.

2) Colors in linens - use colored linens to create a "wow" effect and give a room color and punch as guests walk in.3) Create groupings - use your cake and flowers to enhance your decor and create a focal spot.

2) Colors - pinks, platinum, pale green and yellows are hot for the summer. For the fall look for fuchsias, purple, lavender, turquoise and slate

3) "green" events - brides are wanting to use decor in an eco-friendly way. Flowers are not the most environmentally friendly so think of centerpieces that use rocks, floating candles, or locally grown flowers. Linens, draping and other elements are all reusable decor options that you can rent from TDA Design.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

We would like to wish Christy & Cliff Shaw and very happy 2nd anniversary! Two years ago today Christy & Cliff were married at on the Chautauqua Lawn in Boulder, Colorado. Calluna Events had the honor of being their wedding planner throughout their planning process as well as their day of coordinator for their wedding. Their reception took place following the ceremony at the Flagstaff House Restaurant in Boulder.

Monday, April 13, 2009

For all of my Boulder and Colorado based brides I have just the place to shop for your wedding shoes, handbags and accessories. Boulder based Two Sole Sisters is now carrying the Something Bleu wedding shoe line. If you are a Calluna Events blog reader go in and mention you heard it hear and receive 15% off wedding shoes for you and your bridesmaids! (note: this applies to full-priced merchandise only. Sale items are not included).

Two Sole Sisters , an independent boutique founded by two sisters specializing in unique shoes, handbags and accessories, is located at 1703 Pearl Street in Boulder Colorado.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

As lucky as we are at Calluna Events to help plan weddings with our clients, we are even more fortunate to work with such amazing and talented vendors.

The work of a wedding planner on the day of a wedding is multi-faceted. It entails making sure the bride and groom, their wedding party and families are happy, stress-free and in the right place at the right time. We execute the schedule we have developed over the past few months with each and every vendor in attendance. The help and coordination from the vendors is critical in ensuring the success and flow of the schedule and makes our job that much easier. On Sunday we were lucky to have a team of some of the best wedding vendors in Colorado.

On Sunday we were coordinating with our vendors on such items as confirming and assisting with the set up at the venue (St. Julien Hotel & Spa for Joanne and Jake), coordinating the flow and making sure hair & make up are on time for the bride, Mother's and bridesmaids (The Face Lab and Andy Mendoza did makeup and hair on Sunday), and checking in to make sure the band, lighting and decor are being set up on time, need assistance loading in, sound checking or require additional equipment (Soul X, ceremony musicians & lighting from Starkey Productions). We confirm the load in and set up of all flowers including bouquets, boutonnieres, ceremony & reception flowers and sometimes assist with the set up of aspects such as the huppah or pinning flowers on the family (The European Flower Shop constructed an incredible huppah for Joanne & Jake's wedding), and confirm rental deliveries and set up such as linens, glassware and other decor.

We ensured that a table and platters are available for the baker when they delivered cupcakes (Tee and Cakes provided amazing cupcakes with super cute flags made by Alli at BirdDog Press). We also help coordinate the bride & groom to see each other for the first time for photos (or not seeing each other if they are waiting until the ceremony) and assembling the wedding party and family in the right place at the right time for photographs prior to and after the ceremony. The photography for Joanne & Jake was by the multi-talented (*see my note in the next blog post) Katie Thurmes from Jenna Walker Photographers, one of our favorite wedding photographers.

We set up place cards, guest book, favors or mementos at each place setting. In fact, on Sunday Kristina from The European Flower Shop had provided wheat grass for the place card display. My assistant coordinator, Gabbie, was working with Kristina on the set up on the display and it wasn't coming out the way we had envisioned. So we changed our vision and came up with a completely different idea that incorporated the wheat grass but also some other flowers from the wedding to create a lovely display. We make sure each and every vendor gets to eat dinner and coordinate when it would be best for this to happen in the evenings schedule. We coordinate the entire evening from lining up the wedding party for the ceremony to cuing the musicians to play, to the timing of the cocktail hour, welcome speech and toasts, cake cutting, first dance and parents dances, and making sure each vendor (photographer, videographer and band) knows what's going on. During the whole evening we check in periodically with the bride & groom to make sure all is well with them and they are happy (this includes making sure they have a drink of their choice in their hand).

Tiffany & Naree from the St. Julien - photography by Calluna Events

Other things we helped with behind the scenes on Sunday were providing a lint brush to Jake's father for his suit, pinning Jake's boutonniere on, providing a steamer for the wedding party to use in the hospitality suite, putting the aisle runner in place, carrying a very large backcountry ski pack flled with who knows what down to the bride & groom's room where the ketubah signing took place, taking post-ceremony shoes for the Joanne, the mothers and bridesmaids to this room also, making sure the best man had the rings, protecting the ketubah after it was signed and taking it to their bridal suite as well as taking gifts and cards up to the suite for the evening. We also had to transport a candle (that was supposed to stay lite for 24 hours) from the ceremony to a safe place. The aisle runner that arrived on Sunday was not the length we had ordered so we called and within 30 minutes of the start of the ceremony we had a new aisle runner in place from the rental company. And more...

Other things we do on the day of the wedding are work with the venue on making a weather call if the ceremony and/or reception are scheduled to be outdoors, coordinate transportation for wedding guests, the bride and groom and.or wedding party if the ceremony venue is different from the reception, coordinate payments and/or tips to vendors, provide garment tape to a desperate bridesmaid, assemble a new corsage if one is missing, make runs to the liquor store if we run out of alcohol and advocate on behalf of our clients' with vendors if something is awry...and anything and everything to ensure the day runs smoothly!